Scottish Executive

Birds

Mr David Davidson (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it will take to address the issue of increasing seagull populations in towns and cities.

Allan Wilson: Local authorities already have the powers within their environmental health responsibilities to deal with the nuisance caused by seagulls. In addition, the Scottish Executive already issue general licences to all local authorities which enable them to take action against Great Black-backed gulls, Lesser Black-backed gulls and Herring gulls in specific circumstances and for other gull species, individual licences can be sought from the Scottish Executive.

  The Scottish Executive has also committed £20,000 to a research project - Review of Urban Gulls and their Management in Scotland - to look at the issues raised by increasing seagull populations in towns and cities. The research is expected to be completed by early 2005 and is intended to provide a basis for new guidance to local authorities on best practice.

Charity Law

Mrs Margaret Ewing (Moray) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will introduce legislation to widen the criteria by which the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator can investigate charitable organisations.

Ms Margaret Curran: In A Partnership for a Better Scotland , published in 2003, the Executive made a commitment to legislate on charity law. To take forward that commitment, I will shortly be publishing a draft charity bill for consultation. The draft bill will set out proposals for a Scottish definition of charity and the establishment of the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator as an independent statutory body with a wider range of powers. It is also intended to improve regulation of charity fundraising and accountability of charities to the public.

  Subject to the responses to the consultation on the draft bill, I hope to introduce legislation to the Parliament as soon as legislative time is available.

Children

Scott Barrie (Dunfermline West) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2O-2032 by Euan Robson on 22 April 2004, what progress the child and adolescent mental health development group has made on planning to meet the demand for psychiatric and psychological services needed by looked-after children.

Euan Robson: It is NHS boards’ responsibility to plan and provide services to meet the needs of their resident populations. However, as I advised in my answer to question S2O-2030 on 22 April, the Scottish Executive has established a national Child and Adolescent Mental Health Workforce Group to consider strategic workforce planning issues, and this met for the first time on 24 March. The group’s work will include an evaluation of current workforce data, identification of current gaps and future need, and identification of actions to address gaps. A project plan will then be produced to ensure implementation of identified actions, with clear timescales.

  I also mentioned on 22 April that the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Development Group is developing a "template" to support local service planning, a draft of which is expected to be published in the autumn. This will include services for vulnerable children and young people, such as those who are looked after.

Drug Misuse

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what support is given to help people addicted to methadone.

Hugh Henry: Decisions on treatment interventions, or combinations of interventions, are for individual patients and their health professionals. People who are experiencing difficulty with their methadone prescriptions can discuss, for example, reduced dosage regimes, other pharmacological treatments, psychosocial interventions, or detoxification. Guidance for health professionals is set out in the UK Health Departments’ Drug Misuse and Dependence – Guidelines on Clinical Management .

Drug Misuse

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what research and statistics are available to show whether the prescribing of methadone has reduced drug-related crime.

Hugh Henry: Both the National Treatment Outcomes Research Study in England, and the early results from the Drug Outcome Research in Scotland (DORIS) study confirm the benefits from treatment, in respect of reduced criminal activity, reduced use of illegal drugs and reduced levels of injecting. Over 25% of the sample from the DORIS study were being treated with methadone.

Drug Misuse

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether all people prescribed methadone are routinely screened for consumption of heroin and other drugs.

Hugh Henry: The UK Health Departments’ Drug Misuse and Dependence – Guidelines on Clinical Management set out guidance for health professionals on assessing patients and monitoring compliance with treatment programmes, including urine testing and inspection of injecting sites. The extent and frequency of testing are decisions for individual clinicians, based on the circumstances of each patient.

Drug Misuse

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how much it costs to supply prescribed methadone to one person for one year.

Hugh Henry: It is not possible to provide this information.

  Costs of prescribing by GPs and other medical professionals will depend on fees and remunerations which vary from area to area. The same principle applies to pharmacy costs, which are also negotiated locally. Costs will also be affected by the doses of methadone supplied to individuals, the duration of treatment, and other factors such as social care and counselling which often accompany substitute prescribing.

Drug Misuse

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether (a) known methadone addicts and (b) people prescribed methadone are given regular screening assessment and referral to provide them with knowledge of their condition and options available for detoxification and rehabilitation.

Hugh Henry: Decisions on treatment interventions and options are for individual patients and their clinicians. The UK Health Departments’ Drug Misuse and Dependence – Guidelines on Clinical Management set out advice for clinicians on the range of treatment options available and recommendations for testing arrangements.

Drug Misuse

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the methadone prescribing programme has been a success as a harm reduction strategy.

Hugh Henry: Methadone is used as a treatment in many countries, and its benefits are supported by a substantial body of national and international research. Both the National Treatment Outcome Research Study and the early results from the Drug Outcome Research in Scotland study confirm the benefits from drug treatment, including methadone, in terms of reduced use of illegal drugs, reduced levels of injecting, reduced criminal activity and significant health gains for individuals.

  We would not argue that methadone will suit every patient, but decisions on treatments, or combinations of treatments, are for individual patients and their medical professionals. The Executive does not administer a centrally-managed methadone programme.

Drug Misuse

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether methadone prescribing is the best option for drug addicts’ health.

Hugh Henry: Drug treatment and rehabilitation programmes need to be tailored to the needs and circumstances of individual patients, in discussion with their medical and social care professionals. Different interventions, or combinations of interventions, work for different patients. As indicated in my reply to S2W-8149 on 24 May 2004, the benefits from methadone prescribing are supported by a robust body of research.

Drug and Alcohol Misuse

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what action is planned to allow access to employability services for recovered drug and alcohol addicts.

Hugh Henry: A great deal of activity and funds are already being directed to help people who have recovered, or are recovering, from drug and alcohol problems into training and employment.

  For example, resources from the New Futures Fund, which is unique to Scotland, are being used to fund a range of local projects aimed at providing support and opportunities for training and employment. Social inclusion partnerships and the UK-wide Progress2Work initiative are also supporting those with drug and alcohol problems to improve their employability skills. Mainstream education, training and employment services, such as Job Centre Plus, further and higher education institutions and the careers service will also have contact with those experiencing substance misuse problems, and some have developed specific initiatives to address these needs.

  The Executive’s Effective Interventions Unit has published evidence-based guidance to local service planners and providers on effective ways to improve the employability of drug users. This guidance is influencing the design and delivery of employability and employment services for those with substance misuse problems.

Drug and Alcohol Misuse

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the waiting times are for residential (a) drug detoxification and (b) alcohol detoxification in each NHS board area.

Hugh Henry: The following, based on information provided by Drug and Alcohol Action Teams in their annual corporate action plans, indicates the maximum waiting times for residential detoxification services in 2002-03:

  

 Health Board
 Waiting 
  Time


 Argyll and Clyde
 6 to 8 Weeks


 Ayrshire and Arran
 6 to 8 Weeks


 Borders
 24 Weeks


 Dumfries and Galloway
 No residential 
  service in area


 Fife
 No residential 
  service in area


 Forth Valley
 No residential 
  service in area


 Grampian
 Variable*


 Greater Glasgow
 6 weeks


 Highland
 1 to 2 Weeks


 Lanarkshire
 No residential 
  service in area


 Lothian
 2 Weeks


 Orkney
 No residential service in area


 Shetland
 No residential service in area


 Tayside
 2 to 3 Weeks


 Western Isles
 No residential service in area



  Note:

  *Independent sector service.

  These figures are for illustration only, since waiting times can fluctuate over a relatively short period. Work is already under way with Drug and Alcohol Action Teams to obtain more frequent and consistent information.

  The remit of the majority of residential addiction services in Scotland covers drug and alcohol misuse. Areas listed where there are no local services, will refer patients to services in other areas.

Environment

Ms Rosemary Byrne (South of Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many peat extraction sites there are and where each site is located.

Allan Wilson: The British Geological Survey’s Directory of Mines and Quarries indicates that there were 32 active sites in Scotland in 2002:

  

 Aberdeenshire
 3


 Argyll and Bute
 3


 Dumfries and Galloway
 5


 Falkirk
 2


 Highland
 3


 Midlothian
 2


 North Lanarkshire
 3


 Shetland Islands
 2


 South Lanarkshire
 7


 West Lothian
 2

Environment

Ms Rosemary Byrne (South of Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many peat sites are currently protected from extraction.

Allan Wilson: There are 77 candidate Scottish Special Areas of Conservation, designated under the EC Habitats Directive for the peatland habitat types blanket bog, active raised bog, and degraded raised bog. Together these sites provide international protection for over 220,000 hectares of habitat.

  In addition to this there are a significant number of Sites of Special Scientific Interest, notified under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, and Special Protection Areas classified under the EC Birds Directive, which provides protection for peatland habitats.

  Designation of peatland interests under the EC Habitats and Bird Directives prevents peat extraction, except in extremely restricted circumstances.

Environment

Ms Rosemary Byrne (South of Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what criteria are used to determine which peat sites are protected from extraction.

Allan Wilson: Selection criteria for peatland Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) in Scotland.

  The selection criteria for all sites proposed as candidate SACs throughout the UK follow the principles set out in Annex III (Stage 1) of the Habitats Directive. The guidance for selecting SAC habitats is available on the Habitats Directive website at:

  http://www.ecnc.nl/doc/europe/legislat/habidire.html.

  Selection criteria for peatland Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).

  The guidelines for the selection of biological SSSIs was published in 1989 by the Nature Conservancy Council and have been revised and maintained by the Joint Nature Conservation Committee since 1991. The guidelines provide a rationale for site selection, approach and criteria and detailed guidance for species and habitats. The guidance for selecting SSSIs for bog habitats is available on the JNCC website at www.jncc.gov.uk/Publications/sssi/sssi_content.htm.

  Selection criteria for Special Protected Areas (SPA).

  The Guidelines for the selection of SPA’s has been produced by the Joint Nature Conservation Committee and is available on the JNCC website at:

  http://www.jncc.gov.uk/ProtectedSites/spa/guidelines.htm

  National Planning Policy Guidelines.

  Peat extraction is regulated through the planning system. National Planning Policy Guideline 4: Land for Mineral Working states that "commercial peat extraction is only likely to be acceptable in areas of low conservation/archaeological interest".

Environment

Ms Rosemary Byrne (South of Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive under what (a) planning and (b) environmental regulations peat extraction may take place.

Allan Wilson: Peat extraction is regulated through the planning system. National Planning Policy Guideline 4: Land for Mineral Working states "that commercial peat extraction is only likely to be acceptable in areas of low conservation/archaeological interest."

Environment

Shiona Baird (North East Scotland) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive what requirements there are on local authorities to recycle ozone-depleting refrigerant gases from discarded fridges.

Ross Finnie: None. Under the duty of care rules, local authorities are required to ensure that waste fridges under their control are subject to treatment to capture the ozone-depleting gasses for safe disposal or recovery.

Europe

John Farquhar Munro (Ross, Skye and Inverness West) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive on what basis the Bull Supply Scheme and the Ram Purchase Scheme do not comply with EU state aid rules.

  The member has provided the following Gaelic translation:

  A dh’ fhaighneachd de Riaghaltas na h-Alba dè an dòigh anns nach eil Sgeama nan Tarbh air Iasad agus Sgeama Ceannachd nan Rùdachan a’ tighinn a rèir riaghailtean Aonadh na h-Eòrpa a thaobh taic stàite.

Allan Wilson: I refer the member to the answer given to question S2W-7775 on 7 May 2004. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search "> http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

  The Minister has provided the following Gaelic translation:

  Dh’iarrainn air a’ bhall a dhol chun an fhreagairt a chaidh a thoirt ri ceist S2W-7775. Tha a h-uile ceist ri CPan sgrìobhte rim faotainn air làrach-lìn na Pàrlamaid, agus an goireas airson a lorg aig http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search">http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

Further and Higher Education

Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of Scotland’s (a) medical, (b) dentistry and (c) engineering graduates find work in (i) Scotland, (ii) elsewhere in the UK, (iii) elsewhere in the EU and (iv) elsewhere in the world as a first destination.

Mr Jim Wallace: The following table shows the percentages of (a) medical, (b) dentistry and (c) engineering graduates and diplomates who were in employment at the time of the survey:

  First Destination of Graduates and Diplomates from Scottish Higher Education Institutions and Further Education Colleges, 2001-02

  

 
 Scotland
 Other UK
 Other EU
 Overseas


 Medicine
 92.2%
 7.4%
 0.0%
 0.4%


 Dentistry
 84.5%
 13.6%
 1.8%
 0.0%


 Engineering and Technology
 73.4%
 19.7%
 4.5%
 2.3%



  Sources: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) and Scottish Further Education Funding Council (SFEFC).

  First destination of graduates and diplomates information is collected by higher education institutions (HEIs) and further education colleges (FECs) through a voluntary survey to individual students of all nationalities within the EU who have successfully completed their course. Details are requested about the graduate’s or diplomate’s destination on 31 December following the end of the academic session in which they qualified.

General Practitioners

Mr Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether adequate GP out-of-hours cover can be provided for east and central Sutherland from Dingwall or Invergordon.

Malcolm Chisholm: Health boards are currently developing their plans for out-of-hours service re-provision and are being assisted by a national out-of-hours working group. This group is comprised of key stakeholders from across the service and includes members from NHS24, the Scottish Ambulance Service and patient representatives. In addition, three key senior appointments have been made to the Pay Modernisation Team of NHS Scotland to focus on the new models of out-of-hours care across Scotland. New arrangements will need to meet mandatory accreditation standards to ensure a safe, quality service.

  The new General Medical Services contract allows most GP practices to transfer responsibility for care to their patients. Any GP who wishes to continue to provide cover, will be able to do so. However, in cases where GPs decide to transfer their responsibility, health board’s must have alternative arrangements for the provision of these services in place by the end of December 2004.

General Practitioners

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what concerns it has that services to methadone patients, particularly in Glasgow and Edinburgh, may be withdrawn partly or wholly due to a dispute by GPs over payments for such treatment and what action it will take to address any such concerns.

Hugh Henry: Negotiations are taking place across Scotland between NHS boards and GPs on the provision and funding of enhanced services (including services for drug misusers) under the new General Medical Services contract. We are monitoring the position, but we do not believe that it would be appropriate to intervene in local negotiations at this point.

  Our understanding is that agreement has been reached between health authorities and GPs in Glasgow for a one year period, and that a review will be undertaken during that period of how services for drug misusers will operate beyond then. Transitional arrangements are being put in place in Lothian to cater for patients from GP practices which have decided to opt out of providing services for drug misusers.

  The new contract incorporates a Patient Service Guarantee, which will ensure that patients will receive at least the range of services they currently receive, although these may not necessarily be delivered in the same way. The new contract is being supported by an unprecedented 33% increase in investment in primary care services, which will see spending on general medical services rise to £575 million in 2005-06. The Executive has also invested an additional £34 million over the three years 2001-02 to 2003-04 in improving drug treatment and rehabilitation services.

General Practitioners

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of GP practices in each NHS board area prescribe methadone.

Hugh Henry: The table shows the number and percentage of all GP Practices, by NHS bard, that prescribed methadone (all formulations) in December 2003.

  Number and Percentage of GP Practices Prescribing Methadone

  

 NHS Board
 December 
  2003


 Methadone
 Total
 %


 Argyll and Clyde
 62
 102
 60.78


 Ayrshire and Arran
 8
 62
 12.90


 Borders
 10
 24
 41.67


 Dumfries and Galloway
 16
 37
 43.24


 Fife
 51
 63
 80.95


 Forth Valley
 22
 63
 34.92


 Grampian
 61
 88
 69.32


 Greater Glasgow
 166
 221
 75.11


 Highland
 29
 75
 38.67


 Lanarkshire
 92
 110
 83.64


 Lothian
 116
 141
 82.27


 Orkney
 0
 15
 0.00


 Shetland
 2
 10
 20.00


 Tayside
 57
 72
 79.17


 Western Isles
 0
 14
 0.00


 All NHS Boards
 692
 1097
 63.08



  The table does not present the full picture of methadone prescribing services across Scotland, since specialist drug services also prescribe methadone, both in community and residential settings.

Health

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps are being taken to raise awareness among health professionals of the updated British Thoracic Society and Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network guidelines on asthma care, particularly in light of the recent report, Global Burden of Asthma , commissioned by The Global Initiative for Asthma indicating that Scotland has the highest incidence of asthma amongst 13- and 14-year-olds in the world.

Malcolm Chisholm: SIGN guidelines are well-known to clinicians throughout Scotland and beyond. The guidelines and quick reference guides are distributed, as a matter of course, to NHSScotland and are also available to download from the SIGN website (www.sign.ac.uk). Implementation of SIGN guidelines is a matter for NHS boards.

Hepatitis C

Alasdair Morgan (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress is being made in the establishment of the Skipton Fund for compensation for people with hepatitis C who are infected with the disease as a result of the use of contaminated blood products through the NHS.

Alasdair Morgan (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will publish progress reports on the status of the work to establish the fund for compensation of people with Hepatitis C who are infected with the disease as a result of the use of contaminated blood products through the NHS.

Malcolm Chisholm: I refer the member to the answers given to questions S2F-849 on 29 April 2004, and S2W-8010, S2W-8011 and S2W-8012 on 18 May 2004. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search "> http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Housing

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has concerns about the operation of a points system for applications for housing by housing associations.

Ms Margaret Curran: I have asked Ms Angiolina Foster, Chief Executive of Communities Scotland to respond. Her response is as follows:

  The Housing (Scotland) Act 1987 establishes statutory requirements in relation to the allocation of houses by Registered Social Landlords. Landlords are required to give reasonable preference in allocations to the statutory categories of priority need.

  There is a range of acceptable approaches that landlords can take in order to achieve this; a points based system for housing applications is one of these. A landlord is free to adopt its preferred system as long as it can demonstrate that it is complying with the requirements of the legislation and the performance standards published jointly by Communities Scotland, the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities and the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations.

Housing

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-1778 by Ms Margaret Curran on 19 August 2003, what Communities Scotland’s investment in real terms will be in 2004-05 and what investment is projected for 2005-06.

Mrs Margaret Curran: I have asked Angiolina Foster, Chief Executive of Communities Scotland to respond. Her response is as follows:

  The amount of planned investment by Communities Scotland in 2004-05 will be £264 million, with £182 million invested in urban housing, £65 million in rural housing and the remainder not attributed to a single distinct geographical area. In addition, a further £20 million has also been set aside to be available to respond to any immediate requirements emerging from the affordable housing review.

  The investment programme for 2005-06 will be agreed in late 2004/early 2005.

Housing

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-3112 by Ms Margaret Curran on 21 October 2003, how the £57 million for rural affordable housing was distributed, broken down by local authority area.

Ms Margaret Curran: I have asked Angiolina Foster, Chief Executive of Communities Scotland to respond. Her response is as follows:

  In 2003-04, the planned investment for rural affordable housing by local authority was broken down as follows:

  

 
 £ 
  Million


 Aberdeenshire
 7.622


 Angus
 2.177


 Argyll and Bute
 4.138


 Dumfries and Galloway
 5.215


 East Ayrshire
 1.339


 Fife
 3.094


 Highland
 10.678


 Moray
 1.639


 North Ayrshire
 0.025


 Orkney
 1.746


 Perth and Kinross
 3.589


 Shetland
 0.900


 South Ayrshire
 3.933


 South Lanarkshire
 3.723


 Stirling
 2.238


 The Scottish Borders
 3.266


 Western Isles
 2.199



  Note:

  Planned expenditure figures are used in this table as year-end expenditure reconciliation is ongoing. Figures exclude social and environmental grants provided in rural areas.

Justice

Nicola Sturgeon (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many stop-and-searches were carried out on members of minority ethnic groups in each of the last three years, broken down by ethnic minority group.

Cathy Jamieson: This is an operational matter for chief constables. Scottish forces started recording the ethnicity of persons subject to stop and search or stop and interview on 1 April 2004.

Justice

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether, in relation to the petition of Robert Napier for judicial review, it will provide details of (a) how many days the main hearing before Lord Bonomy took and how much was paid to each counsel engaged in the case on each of those days, (b) how much was paid to counsel for preliminary work up to the main hearing, (c) how much was spent on each expert witness instructed, (d) how many hours were spent by solicitors and other staff employed by it on the case and (e) any other costs incurred by it on the case.

Cathy Jamieson: The hearing before Lord Bonomy lasted for 20 days. The information on costs is not available in the format requested. The costs provided in the table represent the total involvement of counsel and expert witnesses throughout the case, rather than the costs associated with the Proof diet alone.

  

 Service
 Cost


 Counsel’s fees and court costs
 £370,000


 Expert witness reports and evidence
 £98,000


 Livenote system used in court and some 
  small miscellaneous costs
 £52,000


 Total
 £520,000



  In-house solicitor’s time is not recorded on a case-by-case basis so it is not possible to provide these costs.

NHS Finance

Mr David Davidson (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the cost of hospital administration was for each year from 1995 to 2003, broken down by NHS board.

Malcolm Chisholm: Hospital management and administration expenditure for NHS Board areas from 1995 to 2003 was as follows:

  

 Board
(£000s)
 1995-96
 1996-97
 1997-98
 1998-99
 1999-2000
 2000-01
 2001-02
 2002-03


 Ayrshire and Arran
 14,394
 14,203
 15,722
 15,672
 15,927
 18,632
 20,259
 22,454


 Borders
 4,735
 5,132
 5,332
 5,432
 6,605
 6,753
 7,241
 7,882


 Argyll and Clyde
 18,987
 19,441
 20,070
 20,655
 20,196
 22,884
 23,896
 25,680


 State Hospital
 1,343
 1,334
 1,241
 1,649
 1,836
 1,928
 2,399
 2,401


 Fife
 14,078
 14,607
 13,914
 15,039
 15,009
 16,066
 19,397
 19,142


 Glasgow
 70,067
 68,935
 66,523
 63,064
 60,056
 72,357
 74,003
 81,850


 Highland
 12,671
 10,870
 10,828
 11,295
 10,674
 10,263
 12,041
 12,663


 Lanarkshire
 23,272
 25,101
 27,844
 29,017
 30,279
 33,315
 35,659
 36,903


 Grampian
 27,746
 28,147
 26,752
 23,053
 27,188
 29,609
 31,862
 34,923


 Orkney
 647
 698
 711
 712
 731
 885
 1,076
 1,260


 Lothian
 41,159
 39,326
 40,015
 44,598
 41,552
 48,099
 47,758
 57,599


 Tayside Total
 24,369
 25,117
 25,706
 27,138
 29,925
 35,005
 30,434
 33,260


 Forth Valley
 12,723
 12,129
 11,801
 11,641
 11,510
 11,828
 12,637
 15,764


 Western Isles
 1,474
 1,339
 1,557
 1,576
 1,530
 1,947
 1,992
 2,037


 Dumfries and Galloway
 7,897
 8,210
 7,605
 8,544
 8,806
 8,662
 8,939
 9,212


 Shetland
 793
 840
 738
 760
 835
 872
 1,152
 1,280


 Total
 276,355
 275,429
 276,358
 279,844
 282,661
 319,102
 330,745
 364,310



  These figures for management and administration expenses are taken from Scottish Financial Return 5.2, which is completed by each hospital and submitted to the Common Services Agency Information and Statistics Division for publication in the Cost Book.

NHS Staff

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-7480 by Malcolm Chisholm on 11 May 2004, when it received the final report referred to in the answer; whether the final report will be published before the summer recess, and whether it intends to publish the preliminary report and what the reason is for its position on the matter.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Temple Report – Securing Future Practice – was commissioned by the Executive and submitted on 17 December 2003.

  Following this, preliminary clarification of the detail within the report was sought and provided.

  Medical education can be considered in terms of a continuum from entry to medical school until the end of the medical career. To enable the fullest consideration of all the issues raised, it is beneficial for publication of the Temple Report to take place around the same time as the release of the related report, on Basic Medical Education, from the review group chaired by Professor Sir Ken Calman.

  Officials are in the final stages of securing a date for publication of Securing Future Practice. The report will be published before recess.

National Health Service

Brian Adam (Aberdeen North) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-6805 by Hugh Henry on 22 March 2004, what funding was allocated to each NHS board for drug treatment services in 2003-04.

Hugh Henry: Details of allocations to NHS boards for drug treatment services in 2003-04 are set out in the table below.

  

 NHS Board
 Allocation 
  2003-04
(£000)


 Argyll and Clyde
 1,338


 Ayrshire and Arran
 987


 Borders
 162


 Dumfries and Galloway
 258


 Fife
 789


 Forth Valley
 557


 Grampian
 1,313


 Greater Glasgow*
 4,488


 Highland
 414


 Lanarkshire
 1,449


 Lothian
 3,539


 Orkney
 32


 Shetland
 55


 Tayside
 1,483


 Western Isles
 87


 Total Scotland
 16,951



  Note:

  *Funding does not include additional resources of £500,000 allocated to Greater Glasgow NHS Board to meet the treatment costs of the Glasgow Drug Court pilot.

  An additional £6.8 million per annum is allocated to local authorities for drug rehabilitation services via grant aided expenditure.

Police

Mr David Davidson (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what extra resources it will allocate to Grampian Police to monitor and enforce the 40 mph speed limit for HGVs on all single carriageway roads within the force area.

Cathy Jamieson: The Grampian Joint Police Board has set a budget of over £85 million for 2004-05. It is a matter for the chief constable to determine how these resources are used to meet local needs and priorities.

Prison Service

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-3912 by Cathy Jamieson on 18 November 2003, what information it has in respect of the evaluation of the impact of accredited offending behaviour programmes, including the cognitive skills programme, at HM Prison Kilmarnock.

Cathy Jamieson: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) to respond. His response is as follows:

  Kilmarnock Prison delivers "anger management" and "problem solving skills" programmes. Both of these are independently accredited. Evaluation is on-going as it is for similar programmes delivered elsewhere to SPS prisons.

Prison Service

Ms Rosemary Byrne (South of Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of prisoners currently serving sentences for drug-related offences will be offered drug rehabilitation services on release.

Cathy Jamieson: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  All prisoners admitted to the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) with a substance misuse issue who request support on release will be offered a referral to drug rehabilitation services on release. For prisoners who are serving a sentence of less than four years this will initially be provided by SPS in the form of transitional care support. On-going referral (where appropriate) will then be made. For any prisoners serving a sentence of four years or more or any prisoner who is subject to a supervised release order or extended sentence this will be done through statutory Criminal Justice Social Work.

Public Appointments

Donald Gorrie (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-7477 by Mr Andy Kerr on 7 May 2004, what independent information it has in relation to the data provided by Response Handling Ltd regarding response times for the period covered by the answer.

Mr Andy Kerr: The call-handling system operated by Response Handling automatically records details of individual calls and summary reports based on this data are routinely passed to the Executive. The Executive has been assured, and accepts, that this arrangement delivers accurate and reliable results in line with the requirements of the service level agreement.

  Indirect confirmation of the adequacy of response times is provided by the Executive’s "mystery shopper" programme which checks on a random basis that the service is functioning correctly and the contractor’s own customer feedback system which also generates reports for the Executive on levels of customer satisfaction. Neither of these checks has identified problems with response times.

Schools

Rhona Brankin (Midlothian) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether there is any research evidence that urban schools perform better than rural schools.

Peter Peacock: The Scottish Executive is not aware of any research which show that urban schools perform better than rural schools. I refer the member to the National Statistics Publication: Social Focus on Urban Rural Scotland 2003 which gives a variety of data comparing pupils by urban/rural location.

Scottish Executive Publications

David McLetchie (Edinburgh Pentlands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S1W-34337, S2W-1078, S2W-1079 and S2W-7215 by Mr Andy Kerr on 11 March, 16 July 2003 and 15 April 2004, whether it will publish a consolidated list of publications produced in each year since 1999, giving the cost of each such publication.

Mr Andy Kerr: The information requested is given in Scottish Executive publications in the period 12 May 1999 to 31 March 2004 , a copy of which has been placed in the Scottish Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. number 32723).

Scottish Executive Publications

David McLetchie (Edinburgh Pentlands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many consultation documents it has produced in each year since 1999, giving the cost of each such document.

Mr Andy Kerr: All Scottish Executive consultation documents for the last six years can be found on the Scottish Executive website at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/consultations/default.aspx .

Student Finance

Frances Curran (West of Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the contractual annulment of liability period for signatories who may fail to reach the minimum payment threshold under student loan contracts has been for each year that the student loan scheme has been in operation.

Mr Jim Wallace: Under the mortgage-style student loan system introduced in 1990, loans are repaid over a fixed period of five or seven years and will be written off when the borrower reaches 60 years old (or 50 if they received their last loan before they were 40 and the loan has been outstanding for at least 25 years).

  Under the current Income Contingent Repayment scheme introduced in 1998-99, there is no set repayment term as monthly repayments will vary. Income Contingent student loans are repayable at a fixed rate on the marginal income above the threshold of £10,000 and will be written off when the borrower is 65 years old.

  Under both systems the student loan debt will be written off if the borrower dies or receives a disability related benefit because he or she is permanently unable to work.

Tourism

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it expects a memorandum of understanding to be agreed between VisitScotland and VisitBritain; how long such a memorandum has been under negotiation and whether negotiations have taken place between the two agencies only or have included its department responsible for tourism; what directions and guidance the Executive has provided to VisitScotland regarding its relationship with VisitBritain, and how it envisages that future responsibilities for marketing Scotland abroad should be divided between VisitScotland and VisitBritain.

Mr Frank McAveety: The Executive provides overall direction to VisitScotland with regard to its relationship with VisitBritain. A memorandum of understanding on overseas marketing between VisitBritain and VisitScotland has been in place since 1998, and discussions are taking place between VisitBritain and VisitScotland about updating it to reflect the evolving relationship. These discussions primarily involve VisitScotland, VisitBritain and the Wales Tourist Board. In addition, VisitScotland and VisitBritain are in constant contact about practical operational matters on a market by market basis.

Tourism

Rhona Brankin (Midlothian) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what activities are planned by it and VisitScotland in association with the visit of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra to Sweden in October 2004.

Mr Frank McAveety: Following the success of the Executive’s "Scotland in Sweden" event in 2002, several new direct air routes between Scotland and Sweden have been established, and VisitScotland now regards Sweden as an important target market. In order to take advantage of the growing success of these new links, VisitScotland’s marketing of Scotland in Sweden has been significantly strengthened.

  VisitScotland designs all of its marketing activities to achieve the highest possible return on marketing investment in terms of trips to Scotland undertaken as a result of the marketing in question. The Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO) tour of Sweden in October 2004 will be a significant opportunity to showcase Scottish culture, and establish further cultural and artistic links between the two countries. These important outcomes are however likely to be more significant than the generation of additional tourism business for Scotland, and so neither the Executive or VisitScotland plan any specific activities in association with the RSNO’s visit.

Water Charges

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-6845 by Allan Wilson on 29 April 2004, whether it will review the eligibility criteria for the exemption scheme in respect of circumstances where an applicant is debarred from the scheme unless the premises had relief from water charges as at 31 March 1999 and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.

Ross Finnie: The exemption scheme was created to assist organisations that had been in receipt of discretionary relief on their water and sewerage charges and were likely to be most affected by the withdrawal of that relief. As the criteria for the scheme reflect this objective, there are no plans to review them.